Marionette
by Akina Akhai
Summary: Maki is a student of a musical university somewhere in the future; she studies the piano and choral music along with the required generals. Her friend, Rin and Nozomi, dared her to enter the old Marion Mansion on the vexing hill, which she accepted in spite of the said haunting of it.


**Dedicated to my great friend TVST3R**

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"Are you going to do it?" an orange-haired girl laughed hysterically while holding her sides from the extended time she cracks up on the floor. "Unless you're too scared, unless you're just a big pussy-foot."

"Tsk—would you like to replace me, then?" red hair flowed just past the girl's shoulders; one bundle of hair began to be twirled between the girl's fingers, her name was Maki Nishikino. The other girl, Rin Hoshizora, flinched at the redheaded girl's words. "I'm no pussy-foot, and… who even uses that word anymore."

"I assume she does," a girl with purple hair said, the one who propositioned Maki with the dare, this girl was me, Nozomi Tojo. "You should go; I know it'll be quite the experience."

"I never said I wasn't going to go," Maki said, crossing one arm to the joint of her other, which twirled the hair around one digit, and on occasion rub the piece between her thumb and index. "I just don't see the point to, it's just a dare."

"Just a dare that you'll lose if you don't go, then its punishment time," Rin smirked as she pointed her finger at her. "I know the perfect punishment for you!"

"Now, now," I adjourned the two of them, "Rin, it is Maki's decision whether to go or not, don't be threatening her with the after-sort." Closing my eyes, I waited for the redheaded girl's response, what I heard instead was the clatter of a chair and the slam of a door. Knowingly, I opened my eyes with a smile while the orange-haired girl glanced over at me peculiarly.

"Why did you let her go like that," she looked dumbfounded, "you know she isn't going to do it."

"She will do it," I wore a blissful expression. "For the cards told me so."

"Gosh, you treat those cards as if they are some odd-sort of relic, nyan." Rin crossed her arms in a pout, her cheeks puffed out like an old toad.

"Well, typically, they are some odd-sort of relic," beknownst to me was future of that chary, self-constrained girl. "She'll do it, and she'll be glad she did." Rubber skidded across the college parking lot; the redheaded girl was off to do what she was foreordained. Driving her red Toyota Corolla down the high ways to get closer to the old mansion on the other side of the city, soon the builds came to scattered houses here and there, and then finally came the gigantic mountain-like hill. Up the steep, curvy hill were where willow trees dwelled, she exited her car at the flat land at the aiguille, shutting the door behind her as she gazed wide-eyed at the monstrous white building. The stairs creaked under each of the girl's strides upward to the towering doors. Paint peeled off as her hand glided across the wooden surface, leaving white flakes upon her palm, she pushed on the door. It did not budge, and then she realized she needed to pull the door.

Inside, the walls also held peeling paint, but it was a deep maroon, dark and unbelievably well kept the house was, though dust covered nearly everything. It seemed no one had been there for years on years. She walked down the main corridor next to the big stairs, leaving footprints in the dust like a light snowfall. Around a bend was a lone, dark brown door, she opened the passage to find a circular room filled with music and books that reached the alpine roof top made of glass; that room was where she stayed, looking through all the yellowed, dirtied sheets of mostly classical and original music. A yellowish white nearly everywhere she looked, along with many brown or black covered books, with the rare happening of a different colour, but the one thing that captured her eye was salmon sheets sticking out from a high up book shelve. Maki pushed a rolling ladder down the rows of shelves, aligning the ladder and the dull pink papers. Climbing up, she grasped the manuscript, and started downward. _Snap. _One of the ladder bars broke under her foot, the ragged edge carved a small cut up her calf, luckily she caught herself before completely falling down, and continued her descent safely.

"Damn," she reached the bottom and peered over her cut that was not so bad. "I hope this doesn't get infected." she sighed and made her way to the white grand piano at the center of the room, brushing away some of the dust on the piano stool. She placed the music on the music stand; she lifted the fallboard to reveal a completely clean keyboard. Sounds filled the room, and to Maki's surprise, the old piano was in tune. It sounded like Fur Elise, but with a minor and lovingly daunting echo.

Suddenly, her phone went off, and she quickly scrambled for her it in her back pocket, it was Kotori, "Hello, Maki, are you still at that old haunted house?"

"Yeah, I'm still here," she completely forgot that she was in a haunted house.

"Oh, well, you should come back to the dorms soon," she waited for a response. "It's getting a bit late, okay?"

"Uh… yeah," the redheaded girl closed the fallboard, "I'll be there soon." She took off in her car as quick as she could; she had not noticed how dark it had gotten, even though there was a large window at the top of that room. Within a few minutes, she arrived at the dorms, where she met her grey-haired roommate frowning at the door.

"You didn't bring any unwanted visitors," her golden eyes pleaded for the other to say no, "did you?"

"Honestly," the girl sighed, "that place doesn't seem all that haunted, old, but certainly not haunted."

"Really?" she smiled as she ushered the other inside for her to sit at the table for some tea. "How was it then?"

"It was… interesting." Thinking about that mansion reminded her of the slice she received there, and rushed over to the bathroom where she turned on the bath.

"Is something wrong?" Kotori moved to the bathroom door.

"I just got a small cut, I'll be out after I soak it," Maki said as she turned off the faucet and slowly submerged her foot in the water as a test subject to the heat, which was a bit hotter than lukewarm.

"What did you mean by interesting?" the other girl spoke through the door.

"Well, it was very old and…" it was beautiful, but she couldn't possibly say that. "Very creepy," she lied.

"I see…?" Kotori stepped away from the door and pulled out her phone, dialed the only number she was to report to, mine. "Nozomi… she said it was very old and creepy, you sure it's not just an old house?"

"Come on, don't doubt me now," I said.

"She didn't seem to meet anybody there," the grey-haired explained. "Or at least didn't speak of a person."

"That's fine, she'll just have to return," a sly simper formed upon my face.

"But she already completed the dare, whatever are you to—"

"I know what I'm going to do," the phone in Kotori's hand started to buzz as she pulled it away from her ear, before she clicked the hang up herself.

"Who was that?" the redheaded girl was in her pajamas, a black tank-top and pink underwear with a towel laid atop her head like a veil, as she walked from the bathroom to the bunk bed.

"O-oh… my"—she paused for her quick wit to kick in—"boyfriend! Yeah… he hung up on me, and I am a bit mad at her—him, I mean!"

"Okay," the girl dried her red locks with the white fluff that she laid around her neck after she completely toweled her hair. "I never knew you had a boyfriend."

"Uh… we just met," the grey-haired girl said with mock bashfulness.

"It's never good if you fight early on in the relationship," little had she known that very statement would contradict future quite greatly, as she lie down for the night, she thought of the Marion Mansion, her eyes heavy. _Marble floors covered in paths of crimson, the maroon walls seemed to glow with beatitude, and the windows let the blessing of light filter in through the white curtains trimmed with red. Clacks of light footsteps cascaded down the main stairs, all men dressed in black and white suits, the women outfitted with white dresses, but the finest of them all came down the stairs last. Her black hair tied back in a alluring pony topped with a white veil passing her lower back, her attire held frill at the bottom and lace near the top of the strapless piece, the dress showed her beauteous silhouette, while still keeping it a mystery. The only words heard when the woman came down to the redhead's side was, "I do."_

_Red eyes stared into hers as the two gently closed their eyes initiated in a kiss of a lifetime, after the farewells of family members, and guests, the two settled down in the garden out back. They sat on the side of the well holding hands, she looked down to realize that these hands did not look like her hands, as well as her legs, and when she leaned back to look at her reflection in the well, an unknown face shared the same shocked expression. She was a man._

"The fuck?" the red-haired girl sat up in bed, contemplating on what she dreamt of, that was the Marion Mansion she was in, and that man, someone she never seen—the whole thing was abnormal for she had never dreamt until that night. That whole morning built around the thought of that dream, what did it mean? Even through her morning classes she remained stuck, and as always, secluded. Then came the afternoon, where she met up with the two that she would receive guerdon from her completion of the dare.

"I've been to the mansion," Maki said, leaning her weight on one of her legs and propping a hand on her higher hip. "I want my reward."

"Really?" the orange-haired girl smiled. "See any spirits?"

"No," with as annoyed as she was at the very moment, she could care less for conversation.

"How do we know you were there?" the energetic girl whipped her head my way with a questioning glare. That was my plan in getting her to go back, attestation.

"I swear, I was there," the redhead shook her head in disbelief from what she was hearing.

"Where's your evidence?" I laughed. "I surely see none."

"What?" the girl grieved. "You said—"

"Nope," a gentle smile took place of the smirk I wore, "please try again, I'm not doubting of your being there, just please go back, I beg of you." The girl left as soon as she saw the look on my face. Maki went back to the Marion Mansion to go back to that one room that held so much musical art, walking through the halls felt so nostalgic, everything had a different perspective, everything seemed sadder than the last time she visited. The dream was of this place at its peak, when people lived and sang here, when a family occupied these dusty and emptied halls. She went up to the door that held all the music, and once again, the grand piano played the dreary and minor version of Fur Elise fully through. The music never held much meaning to her, but when listening to herself playing the song, it felt like déjà vu, as if she been here, and known everything about here. Behind her, overshadowed by each note, the lock of a door unlatched.

"Oh, a guest is it? May I serve you some tea?" Maki spun around, frightened as she shook her head to the sudden offer. It was a short black-haired girl with crimson eyes, as if blood dwelled in her irises, and she wore an uncanny ballroom dress of a red that matched her bloodied spheres, the hem of it a bright white around the bottom of her legs, wrists, and her neck, all of which were a certain frill. Intimidating as her sudden appearance, she kept a sullen countenance, and bore not happiness, but sadness as she carried herself to Maki's side. "May I seat myself here?"

"Do as you please," Maki, responded nonchalantly, trying to ignore the fact that the girl came from nothing and that she looked very much like the girl in the dream.

"Your playing is very beautiful," the black-haired smiled. "It reminds me ever so much of my mother's playing."

"Oh, really, where is she now?" the red-haired girl asked.

"She left me alone long ago," the smile faded. "However, you are missing something in your playing."

"What happens to be that now?" Maki said, only slightly irritated.

"Heart," the girl smiled once again, "my mother would always play with it as she summoned me, and sang for me."

"Heart, isn't that the most silly of things I've heard," the redhead snapped lightly. "I play the piano and sing, that's it there's nothing more to it."

"Oh, but there is, may I show you?" the black-haired girl gripped onto that smile with unknown reason. "I promise it'll be rather grand."

"Fine," she acquiesced.

"Thank you," she put on a fake grin. "Please, sit back and enjoy."

"Oh, yeah, I will." Maki scooted over on the piano seat, giving the girl more room to play the song. She crossed her arms, but as soon as the music started, the very first note was different, everything was, yet what made is so special? After a few verses, a gentle, loving voice came into play; it certainly held something unfamiliar to Maki, who has studied piano and choir for hours on end. What was so different? The lyrics seemed to be in Italian, and sounded just as sad as the song. Maki only knew some Italian from Opera songs, but the words she could pick out were _"amour," love;_ _"fiori," flowers; _and lastly_, "Non dimenticare," don't forget._ Echoes of the song halted in the room from the décor. "È bellissimo_ (It's very beautiful)."_

"Molte grazie," the mysterious girl thanked Maki much for her comment. "ParLa L'Italiano (Do you speak Italian)?"

"Non parlo bene l'italiano (I don't speak Italian well)," Maki answered.

"I see," her head hung low. "I should have figured."

"I'm sorry," the redhead redirected her eyes at the red-carpeted floor, "if that offended you."

"Oh, it didn't,"—a fabricated smile reappeared—"it just reminds me of home."

"This is your home," Maki asked. "Is it not?"

"No, it's not," the girl stroked the dusty keys of the piano. "My home was with my family and my family—well… you know."

"I don't know," she admitted. "I'm sorry."

The girl stopped everything, and looked over her shoulder with wide eyes, "just what year is it?"

"It's 2018, why?" Maki narrowed her lavender eyes.

"I suppose you don't know then." Tremendous thunder bounced from the walls of the room, the girl removed her piano hands from the multiple, randomly selected keys as she started to walk off towards the white door to the outside sighted earlier. "Leave immediately, you needn't be here, I never want to see you here ever again."

"Whatever are you talking about?" the redheaded girl stormed after the fleeting other and gripped her hand. "I just came here, why do you want me gone so damningly?"

"You know nothing," she whipped her pony-tailed hair around, and sneered at the hand that captured her. She struggled under the taller girl's hold that allowed a glimpse of her wrist from under the white frill and across them were lines. "Release me!"

"As if I would do that," Maki yelled, not sure what she saw. "You haven't told me anything."

"Why should I have to?" she glared. "You're just some random stranger in my mother's home, leave now before I decide to gather the police." The girl tore her hand from the other's tough grip and proceeded to the door, disappearing behind it. Maki grumbled as she ran out the same door, the girl was gone. The redheaded girl started to walk back to her car angrily; it was not as if she cared for the damn girl, why should she ever show her face here again?

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**Author's Notes: I probably will not update this anytime soon, as for my other stories as well. I am hoping to get done with this story before her birthday, or at least near done. I hope you enjoyed and if I am worthy, leave a review!**


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